Included in the Millions list of upcoming titles are a few of the books the library summer reading program is offering as prizes; The Twelve by Justin Cronin, NW by Zadie Smith, Telegraph Avenue by Michael Chabon and Laura Lamont’s Life in Pictures by Emma Straub. Check out The Great Second-Half 2012 Book Preview to find out more about them.

2012 has already been a rich year for books, with new novels from Toni Morrison, Richard Ford, and Hilary Mantel and essay collections from Marilynn Robinson and Jonathan Franzen, to name just a fraction of what we’ve featured, raved about, chewed on, and puzzled over so far. But the remainder of this year (and the hazy beginning of next year) is shaping up to be a jackpot of literary riches. In just a few short months, we’ll be seeing new titles from some of the most beloved and critically lauded authors working today, including Martin Amis, Zadie Smith, Michael Chabon, Junot Díaz, Alice Munro, Ian McEwan, George Saunders, and David Foster Wallace. Incredibly, there’s much more than that to get excited about, but, were we to delve into it further up here, we would risk this introduction consuming the many previews that are meant to follow.